We Have Arrived in Greece

After all that waiting, we made it. Here we are in Greece. It looks very different than I expected. It actually looks like lots of parts of the US I’ve been in, including Utah (also Arizona, Southern California, & Wyoming). At Delphi the mountains look a lot like Rock Canyon, just with Greek ruins at the base instead of a road. Here’s the view from my hotel room balcony in Delphi.

Our first stop was Meteora. These are monasteries built on top of really high rocks. (James Bond climbs one of these in For Your Eyes Only.) We visited two of the remaining 6 sites (originally there were 24).
It’s amazing that these could be built back in the 14th, 15th & 16th centuries with no helicopters, cranes, etc. To reach the monasteries a person had to be lifted by a net that was winched up. Luckily we had stairs. Lots of them.

I've Done Some Updates

I've added some details for some of my posts--so double check to see if there's new stuff!

I probably won't be able to get any pictures up until we get home since it costs money to use the internet here, so look for those sometime later next week!

We're enjoying Greece so far!

Getting To Greece—Another Adventure (OR Hurry Up and Wait)

Part 1 Saturday--First we had to take a shuttle from our apartment to the train station (expensive, but worth it so we didn’t have to haul all our luggage on the bus). Then we had to wait a couple of hours to get on the train. Then we had to find spaces for all the suitcases on the train (Tricky since it was full and we also had several students in our carriage looking for luggage space. Also, 8 students had bought their train tickets for the wrong day). Then we had to ride in the train for 5 hours. Then we had to walk to our hotel and get checked in (everyone taking care of their own luggage, of course). Then we had to find ourselves some dinner (pizza by the metre—another post for another day). Then we had to go to bed.

Part 2 Sunday—First Gary & Carson had to get up early and walk to the (hopefully) free shuttle stop for info on the shuttle to the ferry. Then we had to wait. Then we had to walk (with our luggage) to the shuttle stop. Then we had to wait. Then we had to pick up our ferry tickets. Then we had to wait. Then we had to walk quite a ways to another ferry terminal (with our luggage). Then we had to wait. Then we had to walk to the ferry dock (with our luggage). Then we had to wait. Then we boarded the ferry only to find out we didn’t have the seats we thought we had. Then we had to wait and wait. Then the ferry left! But we still had to ride it overnight for 11 hours—or so we thought.

We all settled in to wait—the students on deck with lawn chairs and the directors in their tiny cabins (but they did have beds). At 2:30am, a few hours after going to sleep, the phone in our cabin rings with someone telling us that we will be arriving in 30 minutes. What?! We aren’t supposed to arrive until 6:00 am! So we gather up our luggage and all the students and go into the terminal. . .to wait.

Last Day in Rome

Last Day in Rome
1) The boys climbed to the top of the dome of St. Peter’s-lots and lots of steps
2) Visited the Colosseum
3) Climbed the Capitol Hill to see the piazza designed by Michelangelo
4) Bought a knock-off Prada purse from a street vendor
5) Ate yummy dinner at one of our favorite restaurants
6) Ate gelato at Giolitti’s one last time

Funny for Friday

A New Adventure

We are leaving Rome tomorrow to go to Greece for the last part of this Study Abroad adventure. We will take a 5 hour train ride Saturday afternoon to Brindisi where we will all stay overnight in a hotel. Sunday afternoon we can board the ferry at 3:00 pm and then wait for it to leave at 6:00 pm (because the students only have deck chair reservations, it's important to get on early so they can all be somewhat together). The ferry sails for Greece all night and we land in Igoumenitsa (sp?) at 6:00 am Monday morning. It will probably be a lousy night's sleep for all. Once we get to Greece, we will be met by our tour guide Kosta with a coach to transport us all to a few places on the way to Athens. We will spend Monday night in Delphi, then from Tuesday on we will be at the Ionis Hotel in Athens. Because we aren't sure about internet availability at our hotels for the next week and a half, you may not see any new posts for a while. In fact, because it's late right now, and I'm really tired (plus the battery on the laptop is nearly dead and I can't run the computer on electricity while running the washer--last tiny load), I've only posted titles of things that still need to be written. Consider it a teaser for what's to come.

Castle San Angelo & St. Peter's Dome